Roasting vegetables is a fantastic way of feeding a crowd with little effort. They would also be delicious if you wanted to prepare selection of similarly prepared root vegetables such as celeriac, carrots or turnips.

Begin by combining the flour, Parmesan, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Peel the parsnips using a potato peeler. Then halve and quarter them lengthways and cut each length in half across, so that you end up with smallish chunks. Cut out any tough woody centres. Now pop the parsnips in a pan, pour in enough boiling water just to cover them and add salt. Put on a lid, bring them to the boil and boil for 3 minutes.

Meanwhile have a large kitchen tray ready. Then, as soon as they are ready, drain them in a colander and, whilst they are still steaming, drop a few at a time (with the aid of some kitchen tongs) into the flour and Parmesan mixture, shaking the bowl and moving them around so that they get a good even coating. As they are coated transfer them to the tray. Make sure you do them all fairly swiftly as the flour mixture will only coat them whilst they are still steamy! When they’re all coated they are ready to cook or store in the fridge or freeze. To bake them, preheat the oven to 400F (200C), Gas Mark 6. Place a large solid roasting tin in the oven to preheat and in it put enough oil just to cover the base and a knob of butter for flavour. Then, when the oven is ready, remove the tin and place it over direct heat (turned fairly low) and, again using tongs, place the parsnips quickly side by side in the tin. Tilt it and baste all the parsnips with hot oil mixture, place the tin in the oven and bake them for 20 minutes, then turn them over, drain off any surplus fat (a bulb baster is good for this) and continue to bake for a further 15-20 minutes or until they are crisp and golden. Serve hot.

Move over turkey and ham, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without crunchy roast potatoes and these ones are the business! Crispy with a Parmesan crust on the outside and tender and fluffy on the inside.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Peel the potatoes and chop in half. You may need to slice the chunks in half again depending on what size you want them. Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and then place back in the pot along with the flour, cheese, and a seasoning of sea salt and ground black pepper. Put the lid on and give them a quick shake to coat and chuff up the sides. Place in a roasting tin and roast in the oven for 35 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.

If you want a no fuss brussel sprout recipe that can be made ahead of time then this is the one for you- baked in a creamy sauce, these brussel sprouts can be kept warm in a low oven until you are ready to serve them.

Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan over a medium high heat until the butter melts and begins to foam. Add in the garlic and fry for 30 seconds before adding in the brussel sprouts and stir frying for 6-8 minutes until tender. Make the white sauce by melting the butter in a saucepan then adding the flour, whisking vigurosly for 1 minute. Add in the milk, whisking as you go until you have a smooth mixture. bring to the boil for about a minute or until thickened then set aside. Stir through 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Place the brussel sprouts into a baking dish and pour the white sauce over to coat. Sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan and cook in the oven for about 20 minutes. Serve straight away.